Sarah Millican gets her priorities straight

Forget prestigious gongs, if.comedy newcomer award-winner Sarah Millican is currently all about her mammaries. ‘Obviously I was pleased I won the award, but the most important thing that happened that day was I got my boobs measured,’ she beams.

‘I’ve got a waist now. I didn’t have one before because my boobs were just resting on it. I didn’t have body dysmorphia, I just needed stronger elastic. I bought two bra-and-knicker sets, so even if I hadn’t won, I was a winner that night.’ She pauses to think for a moment. ‘In my head, winning the award and having great boobs is equal,’ she decides. ‘That’s wrong, isn’t it?’

Sarah Millican

It’s unusual perhaps, but certainly not wrong. In fact, it’s indicative of Millican’s down-to-earth attitude and penchant for anything slightly smutty. Talking about her bits in public is nothing new for this comedian. Her boobs might be a distraction but let’s not forget the latest trophy nestling amid Millican’s books, bagged for Sarah Millican’s Not Nice, her brilliant debut Edinburgh Festival Fringe solo show.

‘It won’t fit on any of my shelves,’ she frets. ‘I’ve got a couple of other awards and I think it’s horrible to have them out. I use them as bookends. You get a mini one for being nominated but this one is huge. I’ve been validated by perspex.’

Millican isn’t quite the giddy kipper you’d expect after receiving such an accolade. ‘Yay! Thank you,’ she responds to Metro’s congratulations just three days after the event. ‘It’s worn off; I’m bored now.’ Not that Millican’s ungrateful, she’s just realistic. ‘I made it wear off,’ she explains. ‘I have to, because when I go to Cardiff Jongleurs next Friday they won’t give a flying shit that I got 67 review stars altogether.’

Not Nice hasn’t just reaped a planetarium’s worth of stars, it’s also spurred some interesting meetings on the street between Millican and her punters, mainly based on a section of the show where she asks for people’s various names for ladybits.

‘I don’t think there was a day that somebody didn’t come up to me and say: “Well done,”‘ she smiles, evidently touched. ‘It’s funny how people introduce themselves, though. One lady said, “Hello, I’m Ladygarden!”‘

Millican is refreshingly candid and more than willing to air her dirty laundry and filthy mind in public. Not Nice centres on her divorce and how that made her feel about the rest of her life. It was three-and-a-half years of material rolled into one hour. Now the challenge is on for her to come up with a new hour in less than a year, because she’s definitely heading back to the Fringe in 2009.

‘You’ve got to build on momentum,’ she enthuses. ‘It’s scary but it’s quite exciting because I get to ditch all of that stuff – although I love it and will still do it in sets – and start again. My hit-rate is better than when I started because of experience and practice. And because I’ve done one show I’ll know how to put it together. I did flounder with this one, which is why I did 27 previews.’

‘Anyway,’ she grins, ‘I’ve got something to put on my poster now.’ She’s right, and it’s not just improved cleavage.